Hello everyone, I am a "newbie" teacher and I recently accepted a year-long contract with a school in Kadikoy. I have taught in Italy and also I am currently a teacher in America, so I am not afriad of any lack of experience, but more, I am interested about the area. I have been to Istanbul before, merely for travel, and fell in love with the city...but I know working is different than just touring a city!

Can anyone advise how Kadikoy compares to other areas of Istanbul as far as prices and living expenses? When I travelled to Istanbul before I stayed mainly on the Euro side. Are there also lots of expat communities/ places to find other teachers? Also, is it a more conservative area? I am female and so I want to be cautious about how I dres...

I know these are broad questions, but I would appreciate advice as I get ready for the move!

Don't worry - you're going to a great place. It's not as crazy of a party as Taksim, or as historic and full of culture, but it's a smallish, friendly neighborhood with a comparatively nice amount of green area, a great seaside, plenty of great bars, cafes, and restaurants, a very young/alternative feel, and more than enough expats to mingle with if you're looking for that. I lived there for four years, and it was my favorite place in Istanbul.

I'd have to take exception to this part, csm. Kadikoy, once called Chalcedon, is actually 17 years older than Istanbul. The Oracle at Delphi told the founder of Byzantium, Byzas, to found his city opposite "the land of the blind." Byzas took the meaning to mean the people of Chalcedon because they would have to be blind to settle there when across the Bosphorus, the land was so much better.

In Christian history, the Council of Chalcedon was the Fourth Ecumenical, which tried to settle Christian dogma and led eventually to the Great Schism into East and West churches.

Kadikoy, once had a mix of cultures from Anatolian Greeks, Sephardic Jews, and Armenian Christians as well as Ottoman Turks living all in the same areas; although, now, most of what is left of these communities are churches and synagogues, which are hard to determine if they are abandoned or not.

The part of Kadikoy where I live, Ritim, across from the buses has loads of interesting architecture, although it sometimes resembles what I imagine Vienna might have looked like after World War II.

Kadife Sokak, or Bar street, has some really cool bars with an urban alternative vibe to it. Transportation's good, once you figure out the ends and outs of the crazy system they have here.

But, you know, it can also a traffic-congested, noisy, smoggy, crowded, garbage heap. Depends on what you like and where you live.

Kadıköy is rich in history and culture. Even the bull, which is in the main intersection of Kadıköy and is the sort of default meeting point, represents the golden bull from which the golden fleece of Jason and the Argonauts fame was taken. The bull, which was the child of Poseidon and the nymph Theophane, helped the children of the cloud goddess Nephele, Phrixus and Helle, escape a wicked stepmother. According to the version of the myth that I heard, the bull landed in Kadıköy (then Chalcedon) when jumping over the Bosphorus. In fact, even the word Bosphorus is Greek for "Ox + river crossing".

However, the history and culture aren't as visible in Kadıköy as they are on the European side. Kadıköy's history is mostly ancient history, and the traces have long since gone. Nearly all the museums, concert venues, art exhibitions, famous buildings, palaces, theatres, etc. are on the European side. For example, in the İstanbul Film Festival (going on right now), there are 7 venues. Only 1 (Rexx Cinema) is in Kadıköy. 5 are in the Taksim/Beyoğlu area, and 1 is in Nişantaşı (close to Taksim).

Personally, I think Kadıköy is the best place in Istanbul to live. When I lived there, I was quite happy to go the European side once a month or so for cultural events or a night out dancing. In fact, I only moved to Europe to be closer to work, but if I ever come back to İstanbul, I'll seriously consider settling permanently in Kadıköy.

I lived in Kadikoy for a year, and have mixed feelings about it. Although it might be the best place on the Asian side, it is still dirty, noisy and very crowded. Apartments are expensive. There are lots and lots of bars and 50000 Turkish restaurants. It is a good vantage point for travelling to other parts of Istanbul by ferry.